Filthy Beautiful Forever

There’s a knock at the door. ‘Mia, are you hungry?’ Collins says through the door.

I pull it open. He and Tatianna are there.

‘Sure.’ And I absolutely am. The four-hour time difference means my stomach wants dinner yesterday.

‘Dinner’s ready. I asked the cook to set an extra plate for you.’ He waves for me to follow them and I do. Collins and Tatianna walk next to each other, but manage to avoid physical contact and don’t say a word as we make our way down to the dining room. I wonder if this is how they normally are together, or if I’ve caused this icy tension. The Collins I knew loved to talk. Some days we’d spend the entire day taking turns telling stories. Sure there were times we’d been quiet, but usually it was because we were reading, or watching something, or even just tired.

The silence between him and Tatianna seems different somehow. Not awkward exactly, but not comfortable either. It’s like they don’t have anything to say to each other, so they’ve just stopped talking. But surely there’s always something to talk about. In all the years Collins and I were friends, I don’t ever remember either one of us ever lacking in interesting things to say.

Collins stops at a doorway and motions for me to enter. Having adjusted my expectations to assume everything is huge in this house, I am not disappointed by the size of the dining room. I follow Tatianna down to the far end of what might more aptly be called a dining hall.

‘Take a seat.’ Collins points at one of the places made up at the end of a table long enough to seat twenty. I sit down and try not to gawk too much as I take in the two amazing crystal chandeliers that hang from above, elegantly illuminating the room. Collins takes the seat next to me, at the head of the table, and Tatianna seats herself on the other side of him and across from me. She barely takes her eyes off her phone as she pours herself some water.

I turn to Collins, wondering if this is the way she usually is when they eat dinner, but he doesn’t seem to notice. I can’t help thinking that if I were dating someone as amazing as Collins, I wouldn’t be staring at my phone when he was around, I’d be gazing into his eyes.

The food is already served and on the table. Collins picks up a bottle of wine and fills my glass before filling his own. He doesn’t offer any to Tatianna. In fact, she doesn’t even have a wine glass.

Dinner is a baked chicken breast with grilled vegetables. Collins looks at it for a moment as if he’s psyching himself up for it, and then picks up his silverware and starts cutting the chicken into pieces.

‘When did you start liking poultry?’ I ask as I cut into my own. I’ll eat almost anything, but Collins had always been a bit of a picky eater, and disliked pretty much all fowl. He’s more a red meat kind of guy. As I take my first bite, I notice Tatianna looking at him coolly, but not saying anything. Crap. Maybe I offended her. ‘Not that I don’t love it, I just meant…I guess we change with age, right?’

Collins finishes chewing, and chases his bite down with wine, then says, ‘Tatianna doesn’t eat red meat, so we don’t really keep it in the house.’ He looks as if he’s talking sadly about a battle he’s lost.

I guess it makes sense if they live together, they must eat a lot of their meals together. But as I glance at her plate I notice she’s not even eating the same thing. Her plate is smaller, and piled with baby spinach and a small cherry tomato that’s been quartered and spread around the edge to give it color. I have to hide my shock. If she’s not even eating it, why should she care? It angers me that she would force her food preferences on him. Especially if they don’t even eat the same thing. Why does she feel the need to change him? He was perfect to start with.

Collins eyes her plate, then looks up at her meaningfully, but doesn’t say anything.

I wonder if he’s realizing how stupid it is, too. I stab a piece of chicken a bit harder than I need to with my fork, and take a bite. Chewing it, I mentally talk myself out of glaring at her throughout dinner. This is her house too after all.

I take a deep breath and ask Collins more about his business as we eat. It’s a bit weird. I was always the numbers girl, and yet, here he is, the owner of an investment firm. Being a bit of a numbers geek, I prod him all evening with questions about the inner workings of it all.

‘Collins,’ Tatianna jumps in while he takes a bite. ‘As fascinating as this is, I’m about finished, and I have to call my agent. You don’t mind if I leave you two, do you?’ At this point, I realize she’s tuned out virtually the entire conversation. If her phone hadn’t been there to distract her, I wonder if she might rather count the individual pieces of spinach in her salad than talk about his work.

‘No, go ahead,’ he says. He kisses her cheek as she kisses the air next to his. I look at his hard square jaw, and smooth tan skin. How could she not want to brush her lips against that jawline?

‘Nice meeting you, Mia,’ she says glancing at me briefly before turning back to her phone and wandering off. She probably figures this is the last time she’s going to see me, and hell, maybe it is. Collins has a good life, a serious girlfriend, I can’t just come barging in.

By dessert, I have a pretty good snapshot of how the money flows through an investment firm. Collins geeks out almost as much as me, and we lean over our chocolate lava cake as we talk about the inner-workings of his company. His eyes are vibrant as he talks about his business, and I can tell he really does love his work. The life in his eyes is something I haven’t seen in a long time, and it fills me with warm energy.

When dinner is over, he walks me back up to my room, leaving me at the door.

‘I’ve got some business to attend to before bed, but we’ll be going out on the yacht tomorrow. I hope you’ll join us. I think you’d love it.’

Just the idea of being on a boat with him brings images of that night back to me. I wonder if he’s thinking about it again, too.

He looks down at me. We stand a foot apart, but there’s a desire in his eyes to move closer. To be alone with him on his yacht sounds delicious. I think of his perfectly built adult body taking command and riding me and feel a throb between my legs.

I swallow, and remind myself that he invited me to go with him and his girlfriend. ‘That would be fun,’ I say.

He smiles and his eyes flit down my body briefly, making my cheeks flush. He didn’t look at Tatianna that way. In fact, during dinner they’d hardly exchanged a look, let alone talked to each other. I have to wonder if he’s happy with her. I mean he must be, they live together. But this evening at dinner, he didn’t seem happy, at least not with her.

‘Night,’ he says.

‘See you tomorrow.’

I close the door and my head is spinning. My pulse racing just from the thrill of being near him. I fall back on the bed and stare at the ceiling. He may not seem overly excited about the promise we made each other when we were ten, but he does seem genuinely happy to see me. It won’t hurt if I stay a few days. I roll over and dig in my bag—which is still on the mammoth bed—and pull out my laptop, opening it up.

Maybe I can look for a job here. If he’s really with Tatianna, I can’t expect him to put me up forever. I need an exit strategy.

Just in case.

Chapter Five

Collins

I park my car in the marina lot and lead the way toward the docks. Tatianna’s eyes are downcast on her phone, while Mia’s are wide and her neck is craning to take in every ounce of her surroundings.

‘Oh wow, this is…’ She chews on her lip, searching for the word.

I know this is much different from how we grew up, but I don’t want her to feel intimidated. ‘I have a thing for boats.’ I grin at her and wait for the double meaning in my comment to hit. Her cheeks flush pink and my dick throbs eagerly at the memory of her tight little body. I’m thankful for the cover of my aviator-style sunglasses. ‘We’ll have fun today,’ I add, recovering.

‘Yes.’ She swallows and glances at Tatianna, who is following closely behind us, but absorbed in something on her phone as she so often is lately.

‘This is her,’ I say, pointing up ahead to where the sleek, white-hulled vessel rests in the water. She’s big—but not obnoxiously so. Only seventy-feet, which is actually on the small side for a yacht. But she sleeps eight guests, in four private cabins, which is plenty big for my recreational use.

The staff has her all ready for us. The chrome fixtures have been polished and are sparkling in the sunlight, and I can see up on the main deck that the lounge chairs have been outfitted with pillows and towels. I offer Tatianna a hand and she climbs aboard. I glance back to see what’s keeping Mia. She’s still standing on the dock, her attention captured by something at the stern.

‘Mia?’ I climb down the steps and go to her.

She’s staring at the purple cursive lettering I had painted at the stern, just above the swim platform.

‘You named your boat Gremlin?’ she asks with astonishment in her voice.

I shrug. ‘It seemed fitting.’ When I bought my boat, I could think of no better name than after my friend who I shared so many good times with—one of the most significant happening on a boat. Her eyes widen and find mine as the meaning behind the name sinks in.

‘Come on.’ I take her hand and lead her toward the stairs. ‘I want to show you around.’

She squeezes my hand, and then follows me up on board.

Every inch of the yacht seems to amaze her, and I love the giddy excitement she openly displays. It’s refreshing. She seems to like the theater room with its big screen and comfy reclining loveseats the best. ‘The intent behind it is for rainy days, but we have so few of those in Southern California, that it’s never been used. We mostly stay out on the deck,’ I explain.

‘I’m sure you and Tatianna come and stay the night here just for the fun of it, sometimes, right? Movie and popcorn night. That would be fun.’

My brow crinkles. ‘No, actually we’ve never done that.’

Mia’s confusion is written all over her face.

I decide to continue the tour. Showing her the bedrooms feels too intimate, especially given what happened between us the last time we were below deck together, so I merely point and continue walking.

Mia shuffles behind, her gaze bouncing around each room to absorb every detail.

No matter what is going on in my life, or at work, I always looked forward to Sundays. Fresh ocean air and blue skies are good for the soul.

I guide her back upstairs. The breeze is just beginning to pick up as we motor out of the harbor. The deck is outfitted with various couches and chairs arranged for conversation, there’s a hot tub off to one side and then plenty of lounge chairs with fluffy cushions for sunbathing. That’s where Tatianna has already stationed herself. As usual she’s removed her top—her small pointy nipples are staring straight up at the sun. She sits up when she notices our arrival.

‘Let me know if this makes you uncomfortable,’ she says to Mia, gesturing to her naked chest. ‘I don’t like tan lines, but I can cover up if you prefer.’

Mia stares straight ahead, seemingly unfazed by Tatianna’s display. ‘I’m not uncomfortable.’ Mia removes her own tank top from over her head, and I swear I see the whole thing in slow motion to the beat of hypnotic music. I am mesmerized. Mia has nothing to be ashamed of. Her chest is on the large side and is barely contained by the cups of her purple bikini top. If she wanted to follow suit and take off her top, there is no way my erection would go unnoticed. I already feel my cock stirring in my shorts, and I have to distract myself with gathering drinks.

I look down at my dick and curse at him. ‘Not today, fucker,’ I say under my breath while arranging cups with ice.

‘What was that?’ Mia asks, coming over to join me.

‘Nothing,’ I bite out. ‘What would you like to drink?’

‘Do you have lemonade?’

‘Sure do.’

Breasts are one of the few areas where Tatianna hasn’t been blessed, however, that doesn’t mean I’m free to gawk at Mia’s glorious, round tits. But dear God, it’s like Christmas. I can’t seem to keep my eyes from straying over to her chest. The soft mounds are pushed together thanks to the straining fabric, and her cleavage is plentiful. I want to bury my face between them and treat them to wet kisses. Mia in a bathing suit is holy hell, hot. I’m used to Tatianna’s model-thin body with her lack of curves, and visible rib cage. Mia has soft rounded flesh that I want to sink my teeth into. I can’t stop staring, and I’m hoping the heated gazes I’m sending her aren’t obvious.

‘Collins?’ Tatianna asks, pulling my attention away.

‘Yeah?’ My voice comes out tense and too rough. I clear my throat and try again.

‘Can I have sparkling mineral water with a slice of cucumber?’ she asks.

‘Of course.’ I head to the kitchen to retrieve a cucumber, thankful for the moment away from Mia. I have no idea why she’s affecting me this way, but I know I need to get my head on straight.

We settle in for some sunbathing, but after an hour of sitting quietly in the sun, Mia declares herself officially bored and wanders off in search of something to entertain herself.

There are books and board games in a cabinet inside, and I expect her to return with one of those, but when she makes her way back on deck fifteen minutes later, she’s carrying several foam noodles and one of the crew members—James, I think—is attaching a giant inflatable slide I didn’t even know I had over the side of the boat.

‘I hope you don’t mind, but I asked the captain if we could stop to swim,’ Mia says.

‘Swim?’ Tatianna and I both ask in unison. Tatianna sits up and watches as the slide is attached.

‘Yeah, unless you’re chicken,’ Mia taunts, waving one of the noodles at me.

I rise and remove my sunglasses. ‘I’m game.’ I can only sit in the sun for so long. Typically after an hour or so, I head inside and check my email while Tatianna continues sunning herself to a deep bronzed glow.

‘Are you seriously going to go down that thing?’ Tatianna asks, eyeing the slide with disdain.

‘Sure, why not?’ I shrug.

‘I’m not getting in that freezing cold water,’ Tatianna says, laying down again. ‘You two have fun.’ She lifts the fashion magazine she was reading back in front of her face.

When I get close, Mia spanks me across the ass with a noodle. An unexpected laugh falls from my lips. There is something so playful and whimsical about her personality. She can still make me forget myself and just let go, despite our years apart. She’s always possessed that skill. It was most helpful right after my mom passed away. I needed that levity more than ever, and Mia provided it. And I suppose now is no different. I like that she doesn’t act her age.

‘Come on. I’ll let you go first down the slide,’ she says.

‘Let me, huh?’ I lift one eyebrow. I pick her up and set her down on the top of the slide. It doesn’t escape my notice that she’s removed the shorts she’d been wearing all afternoon. Her bikini bottoms don’t match the top. They’re lime green. And the rounded curve of her ass cheeks peeking from the bottom is highly distracting. ‘Down you go.’ I place my hands on her shoulders and give her a playful push while still holding her securely.

‘You wouldn’t.’ She glares at me while her mouth is curved up into a crooked grin.

‘Maybe I’m not as nice as the guy you remember.’

‘You’re perfect,’ she says, her face going serious for a moment.

She can’t say things like that. It’s confusing as shit. The conversation I had with Colton last night spins in my brain. He was convinced that I’ve been in love Mia since I was a kid.

‘Collins?’ she asks, her face still holding its serious expression.

‘Plug your nose,’ I tell her and give her a shove.

Mia goes barreling down the slide toward the ocean and just before I hear the splash, she lets out a playful squeal.

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